Syrian army launches offensive near Golan Heights

Heavy shelling and gunfire reportedly heard in Southern Syria close to Israel border.

Golan border Syria truck 370.
(photo credit: REUTERS/Baz Ratner)

Opposition activists reported air raids in the southern province of Deraa, Syria, that killed at least two people, the Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star reported on Saturday.

The Syrian army had launched an aerial offensive in southern Syria near the border with Israel’s Golan Heights on Friday.

Concurrently, unidentified opposition activists said rebel fighters are preparing for a new campaign that will begin in Deraa and push toward Damascus.

The report quoted the activists as saying that thousands of US trained rebels are preparing to attack the Syrian army in the south.

Heavy shelling and gunfire were heard close to the Israeli border on Friday, CNN reported.

Jordan’s border with southern Syria has been reported to be a transit route for opposition fighters and weapons.

There have been reports that the US has been training opposition fighters in Jordan.

Saudi Arabia and the US have been providing aid to the Jordanian government in order to keep unrest at a minimum and around 1,500 American troops are stationed in the country to help deal with threats and refugees flowing from the civil war in neighboring Syria.